Her Dark Sides
by LiveLaughLove72
Summary: It has been two agonizingly long months since Tyler left. Caroline has fallen into a deep state of depression and has now decided to leave Mystic Falls and find herself. While she is gone, she learns of her dark sides and her true identity. One of the darkest desires she has kept buried for so long? Klaus Mikaelson. (Not smut! Rated M to be safe! There is some language.)
1. Chapter 1

**Hey! So, I've finally gotten the courage to write a Klaroline story! I was afraid to at first because the two are just such complex characters, but after a bit of encouragement from my BFF, I have finally decided to follow through with it. Sorry if it isn't my best work. :P Enjoy.**

* * *

Caroline sighed as she gazed at her image in the mirror. Today was the day. She was leaving for Paris.

It had been a sudden decision, really. Nothing had pushed her to do it, she hadn't really thought it through. But for some reason, the thought of getting out of town seemed like a great idea. To run off into the sunset, a powerful, strong..._single_ woman.

Tyler had broken things off with her about two months ago. Although she knew it was for the best, she couldn't seem to get him out of her mind. The thought of him constantly nagged her, buzzing around her head like bees surrounding a jam pot. If only she could kill those images, those memories, with the swat of her hand, she would. But instead, she was a vampire. Emotions heightened, memories vivid and haunting, yet there was also crushing strength and lightening speed. Sometimes, Caroline didn't know if the cons outweighed the pros of vampirism, or vice versa.

The point was that Tyler was gone and he wasn't coming back. She'd waited by the phone, falling helplessly into a deep dark pit of despair faster and faster until one day she just broke down. And she'd taken it out on who? Oh, right, her best friend, Elena. The memories flashed behind her closed eyes, almost tangible.

_"Caroline?" Elena asked worriedly. "Is everything alright?"_

_Sobs rocked her body and she crumpled to the floor in tears. Mascara flowed down her face, streaking her perfect features with black stains. "Do I look alright to you?" she gasped._

_Elena rushed over to her, taking her hand and stroking her knuckles with her thumb. Caroline pulled her hand back and flew across the room, heat in her gaze. Dark veins pulsed underneath her eyes as she felt the blood rush to her head. The whites of her eyes had turned crimson red and her fangs dripped saliva as she snarled. "Don't ever touch me!" she hissed._

_Elena got on her feet, raising her hands in surrender. As she whispered comforting words, she slowly walked over to her. Before Caroline could react, she flashed in front of her, confident that she wouldn't hurt her. Grabbing Caroline's arms and pinning them down, Elena murmured, "It will be okay."_

_Although Caroline wasn't an old vampire, she sure as hell was strong. With inhuman speed, she broke free of Elena's grasp, shoved her backward, and clenched her throat, shoving Elena's frail form against the wall. Elena choked and gasped for air. She tried with all her might to remove the hands clutching her neck, but Caroline was stronger. The blonde leaned forward until her face was only inches away from the doppelganger's. _

_"This is all because of you!" she screamed in her face, the monstrous expression back. "If you hadn't been around, Klaus would have had no reason to come to Mystic Falls for that goddamn ritual! He wouldn't have been able to turn Tyler into a hybrid! And, for crying out loud, he wouldn't have a reason to kill his mother! Tyler wouldn't have to go to New Orleans and plot his worthless unrealistic revenge against Klaus! He would still be here, with me! He would still love me! Just because you're a doppelganger! Everyone who's around you has suffered! I wish I'd never met you, Elena Gilbert!"_

_And with that, she wept as she quickly packed all her things and walked out the door, anxious to leave college once and for all._

Opening her eyes, Caroline felt a piece of her heart break. Elena had never meant to harm her. Yet, she could never take back those words, for everything she said was true. Sometimes, although she'd never admit it, she wished she had never met Elena. Things would be so much easier. If Elena hadn't existed, Caroline would probably still be an oblivious human, in love with Matt of all people, and planning her wedding day by now.

But if Elena didn't exist, Caroline would still be a neurotic, clingy, control-freak. She was that now, but back then, she was much worse and much more superficial. Now, she was comfortable in her own skin. Secure, confident...alive. Dying had made her more alive.

"Ha," she mumbled. "That's a new one."

Yet it wasn't all Elena's fault for everything. It was mostly Klaus. The Original hybrid. The arrogant, self-centered, evil man who had caused all these problems. The one she would have never met if Elena didn't exist. But Klaus wasn't just those bad things. He was much more. He was passionate, sweet in a strange kind of way, magnetic, protective, complex, intoxicating, and God knows he was attractive.

Caroline had stronger feelings for Klaus than she had ever let on, but she knew she couldn't confess them. The though of him showing her the world and treating her like a queen was intoxicating, and she fought with herself every day over the temptation. She knew that if she were to become Klaus's lover (the thought gave her goose bumps), she would lose the last shred of humanity that she had left. And she didn't know if she could handle that.

Klaus had killed so many important people in her friends' lives. Elena's aunt, Tyler's mom, Jules, all of his siblings, 12 of his own hybrids, and even Elena herself! She was resurrected, but that's not the point. Even so, he had still found a place in Caroline's compassionate, stupid heart, and he'd moved in pretty quick. After that one night when he saved her life, telling her of the beautiful things life had in store for her, she had grown a tiny soft spot for him. It grew bigger and bigger each time they spoke to one another. And when he kissed her on the cheek the night of her graduation, butterflies in her stomach sent her soaring. Thinking back on it, she blushed at how fast her heart had been beating. God, he'd probably_ heard_ it! So embarrassing!

To be honest, she was a bit disappointed and surprised that he'd only kissed her on the cheek. He had promised to wait for her forever, tried to seduce her, saved her life twice, and then he leaves without an actual goodbye kiss? She was with Tyler then, and if he'd kissed her, she probably would have slapped him. All in all, she respected his wise choice, but now, it sort of stung.

She realized then that Klaus had never actually explained his reason for moving to New Orleans. He had told her some witches were plotting against him and he had to go assert his dominance or whatever. Honestly, she didn't really know what the reason was. Obviously people had tried to harm him before, but he never took it this seriously. She herself had participated in her friends' secret plans to kill him. Hell, they'd even desiccated him and he didn't take it this personally! She longed to know why this situation was different, but she couldn't ask. Klaus was bad news. End of story. She needed to move on, find a nice boy, and...and...she really didn't know what would come next. Marriage? That wasn't what she wanted anymore, though.

Clearing her mind of all Tyler and/or Klaus related thoughts, she snatched her suitcases and trotted down the stairs. Her mother stood at the bottom of the steps in her clearly unfashionable Sheriff's uniform. Tears pooled in her eyes as Caroline reached her. Liz pulled her into an embrace and cried into her blonde wavy hair.

"Mom, it's okay," Caroline laughed at her mother's sensitivity. "I already left once."

Liz still cried, hugging her daughter as tight as she could. "I know," she sniffled, "but it hurts just as much. I'm going to miss you."

Caroline felt the tears start to prick the backs of her eyes and buried her face in her mother's neck. "I'll miss you, too," she muttered, trying to keep the tears out of her voice.

Reluctantly, they both let go and stared at each other. Caroline loved her mom more than anything in the world. At first, they really weren't very close, but over the past two years, their relationship was knitted back together. Now, they had become very affectionate towards each other. And once again, Caroline was ditching her mother to fend for herself in a strange town full of vampires and werewolves. No hybrids left, and Caroline wasn't quite sure how she felt about that.

She blinked back tears to keep her mascara from running and slowly treaded out the door and to her car. Her mom followed closely behind, the sound of her sniffles and quiet sobs making Caroline feel even guiltier about leaving. Once she reached the sparkling black vehicle, she turned and wrapped her arms around her mother once again. "I'll call as soon as I get to the airport, okay?" she assured her. "I promise."

Liz nodded, her face crumpling with the thought of her daughter leaving again. "I just want you to be safe, Caroline," she explained. "I mean, to be caught up in all of this stuff is just...," she paused, searching for the correct words to describe it, "it's crazy. I mean, I don't know how I can trust that you'll be safe 4,000 miles from here when you're not safe living in this small town!"

Caroline nodded in understanding. But this was something she needed to do! She needed it for herself. She wanted to explore the world on her own, learn more about herself, and start to become an independent woman. She knew she must grow up because even though she would be seventeen for the rest of her existence, it was time to start living like an adult. It was time to go out into the world and find herself. Meet new people, make new friends, learn to trust her instincts, so when she came back, she would know exactly what she wanted out of her...death...

"I know you're worried," Caroline said. "I know that you want me to stay here, but I want to go see what this world has in store for someone of my kind. I never knew what I wanted out of life, but now I have the chance to go and find out. And I'm going to take it." She reached up and wiped away the tear slipping down her mom's cheek. "I want to live my life the way that I choose. I want to explore the world. And when I am done, I will come back for you, Mom, and I will tell you all about my journey. I promise you that I will see you soon, okay?"

Liz grabbed her daughter's hand and looked her in the eye. "Okay," she breathed, a watery smile appearing on her face. "I love you, Caroline. You'll always be my little girl."

Caroline's eyes started to fill up with tears of joy. Swallowing the lump in her throat she whispered, "I know."

Climbing into the car, Caroline started the engine. It purred to life, and butterflies began to bounce around in her stomach. This was it. She couldn't, _wouldn't_ allow herself to turn around once she backed out of this driveway. She faced her mother who had started crying again. The sun shined in her golden hair, her eyes glimmering. Although she'd promised to see her mother again, she didn't know if that promise could be fulfilled. What if she didn't want to come back? What if something happened and she never saw her mom again?

_No_, she thought. _I can't do this to myself. I have to leave. I have to get out._ She lifted her hand and waved to her mother, finally saying goodbye. "I love you, too, mom," she whispered, her voice fading into the rumbling of the engine. Closing her eyes, the images of her life flashed before her. Becoming a vampire, kissing Matt, developing a friendship with Tyler, finding the love of her life in him, meeting Klaus, falling for Klaus... Her life had been a mess of men. Now it was time for it to be about her.

She backed out of the driveway and looked ahead into the sun. It shined bright, showering the world in the golden light of happiness, comfort, and warmth. She needed to learn how to be her own sun. How to have the power in her own life, instead of revolving around someone else's. In that moment, she could taste the sweet freedom and power known as independence. Now she could finally start to recognize this as her own life.

Pressing her foot down on the gas pedal, she took off down the road, all thoughts escaping her except for the feeling of being free.

* * *

**What'd you think? Remember, reviews are love and constructive criticism is always welcomed! I know that this is Klaroline, but I want Caroline's character to be explored more, and I want her to learn of her dark sides before she falls into his arms. I think this is what she needs to do before she can allow herself to realize how much she actually loves him. So, at least for a few chapters, there may not be much Klaus. But I promise, it will be worth it! I will go deeper into the Forwood relationship because I think that deserves to be explained, but I'm not a big fan of Tyler so... Anyway, let me know what you think. I worked hard on this and so I hope you all like it. Thanks for reading!**

**-_Raina_**


	2. Chapter 2

**Hey, I'm back! So, I didn't get many reviews last chapter, but hopefully that will change over time! What I did get, I am very happy about! :) Thanks, you guys! All right, without further ado, here is Chapter 2! (Haha, that rhymed :) I'm a genius!)**

* * *

Caroline rested her head against the uncomfortable coach seat on the airplane. She sat by the window, bouncing her legs impatiently. This was her first time riding an airplane, and she wanted to get it over with fast. Her stomach did flips as she sweated like an animal. She chuckled softly at herself. For crying out loud, she was a_ vampire_. If this plane were to crash, she would probably survive! Even so, the thought of being thousands of feet up in the air made her queasy.

It was going to be a rather long flight, so she pulled out her iPhone and texted her mom, alerting her that she had gotten on the plane safely. In order to pass the next few minutes, she started playing Candy Crush, a Facebook game that she'd recently become addicted to. Although her life was filled to the brim with doppelgangers, witches, vampires, werewolves, _hybrids_, she still had the time to play silly little games. When was she ever going to grow up?

Suddenly, a figure plopped down beside her. Caroline turned her head to see a pale girl with long brunette ringlets cascading down her shoulders. She held herself with a sort of confidence and arrogance. Her face was the spitting image of Elena's, except for wrinkles that were engraved around her eyes and carved into her forehead. She looked tired and malnourished. Caroline knew who this was: Katherine.

"What are _you_ doing here?" she snarled, irritated that she was stuck on a flight with someone she didn't want to spend more than two seconds speaking to.

Katherine smiled wickedly. She responded in her whiny, unpleasant voice, "I could ask you the same question. I mean, why are you leaving your little buddies back in Mystic Falls?" Giggling, she added, "Did they send you away because they just can't have a blonde in their group anymore?"

Caroline hissed viciously. Katherine knew all the ways to get under a person's skin. She was like a mosquito, and Caroline wanted so badly just to swat her with a rolled up newspaper. And yet, although she hurt and manipulated everyone, she could figure out a person within seconds of meeting them. She would know their dirtiest secrets, their darkest desires, and their deepest regrets. There was something about her that made her special, even though she was the most annoying person in existence.

Katherine rolled her eyes and mumbled, "What a temper." After a moment of awkward silence between the two girls, she finally admitted, "I'm a human and I'm dying. I've made a lot of enemies over the past hundred years that I'm sure would be thrilled to know that I'm now a weak and fragile mortal. I don't know what that means to you," she commented, "but to me, it sends a perfectly clear message to run like hell."

Caroline nodded slightly in understanding and leaned back against her seat again, closing her eyes. Katherine had alerted the group of the gradual aging she was experiencing a while ago. They could not figure out a way to stop it, and for the record, they didn't really want to. Katherine deserved everything she was getting. Caroline had seen her kill, manipulate, and even abandon her own flesh and blood. It was no wonder she was being punished for the cruel immoral crimes she had committed.

Yet Caroline felt a sort of pity for Katherine. It was evident that she had truly loved Stefan, even though she did not deserve his kind heart and soul. She had lost him, and now she'd lost Elijah. Now she was dying, and the one person she wanted to be with was probably not even thinking about her at the moment. Just like Klaus. Caroline had been in love with Tyler, whom she had lost, and now Klaus had deserted her as well. She had fallen into her depression, sinking faster and faster into a land of pain and suffering. She fought with herself every day not to turn her emotions off. To make the pain go away.

Katherine probably wanted to turn it off, too.

"What are you doing on this plane, Barbie?" Katherine asked, genuinely curious. "Did your little wolf boy run away crying, 'Caroline,'?"

She clenched her teeth, trying to hold back from sinking her fangs into Katherine's delicate flesh. "I wanted to get away," she muttered. "There's nothing left for me back in Mystic Falls."

"Really? That's you're reason?"

"My reasons are none of your business."

"Ooh, a bit snippy today, are we?"

"No, just hungry," Caroline answered with a fiendish grin, exposing her sharp canines.

The blood drained out of Katherine's face, leaving behind a pale, frightened expression. She pursed her lips and nodded, understanding. Turning her head to avoid Caroline's glare, she started a flirty conversation with the man sitting on her other side. He flirted back, making Caroline want to vomit. Why were all people so intent on letting her know that they were happy and she wasn't? The thought made her want to rip into a human's skin, blood bursting out of the wound and splashing on her tongue. The sweet, hot substance slipping down her throat with ease. The mere idea made her lick her lips in anticipation. She needed a blood bag, fast.

Or she just needed to get a handle on her anger.

Pulling out a pair of hot pink headphones, Caroline plugged them into her iPhone and turned the volume up to full blast. She closed her eyes and attempted to drown everything out with the music. However, every song that played reminded her of Tyler. Every word that was sung was relevant to what she was going through at the moment. Tears welled up in her eyes and a single one fell down her cheek. She sniffed and wiped it away with the back of her hand. _Stop crying,_ she internally scolded herself. _You're acting like a child. Tyler's gone and he's never coming back. He hates you._

She knew this wasn't true, but she thought that if she kept telling herself this, maybe one day she'd start to believe it, enabling herself to move on. Tyler didn't hate her, he hated Klaus. But Klaus was important to Caroline. She was attracted to him of course, but it was much more than that. She cared for him in a way that she couldn't explain in words. She didn't want Tyler to hurt him, but at the same time, she wanted Klaus to receive a punishment for murdering Tyler's mom. Sadly, a slap on the wrist just wasn't going to cut it.

Absorbed in her thoughts, she hadn't even realized the plane had taken off. She drew in quick rapid breaths as the concept hit her. She was thousands of feet in the air! Staring out the window, she finally noticed what Klaus had been speaking of. The world below her displayed genuine beauty. She could see the rolling hills below her, the tiny people resembling ants, the jagged mountains, the purple hues of color surrounding the world she lived in. How had she never witnessed this before? It took her breath away and lifted her spirits. This was it. She was leaving and she would see many more breath-taking things out there in Paris. She wasn't coming home for a very long time.

Turning her gaze to her iPhone, she opened up her voicemails. She knew what she was looking for. Caroline found it quickly and played it, mouthing the words because she had memorized this by heart.

_"Caroline. I'm standing in one of my favorite places in the world. Surrounded by food, music, art, culture. And all I can think about is how much I want to show it to you. Maybe one day you'll let me."_

God, his British accent killed her. She could practically hear the smile in his voice. This was her favorite thing to listen to because it reminded her of the things that lay out there in the world. The things that she had yet to witness. And she wanted to witness them herself. Alone. She did want to see the world. In fact, it was her greatest desire at this moment, but she didn't want to have someone show it to her. She needed to do it alone and learn how to take care of herself. The thought of standing at the top of the Eiffel Tower all by herself, gazing out at the city lights was intoxicating all on its own. She did not need a man to present it to her. Before, she had relied on a man for everything. Now, it was all about her. Caroline. How could she decipher her feelings when she wasn't even sure how she felt? How could she love someone before falling in love with herself? The answer was simply that she couldn't. This trip would change things forever.

Oh my, how right she was.

* * *

**I know MUCH SHORTER. What did you guys think of Katherine being added into the mix? SPOILER ALERT: She _may_ play a big part in this story, but I'm not sure yet. We'll see. Sorry about the lame length of this chapter. But, I wanted to get up the next chapter as soon as possible because I've updated my other story. Also, I apologize for any unrealistic aspects. I've never been on a plane before so I don't really know what to expect. Please just let me be ignorant. If you're a PLL Emaya fan, please check out My Missing Puzzle Piece. Those who are fans of Klaroline fluff, check out my one-shot Born to Die. Thanks for reading! I will try as hard as I can to post a new chapter each week. Reviews are love and constructive criticism is always welcome! Thank you!  
**

**-Raina**


End file.
